Last year, San Diego unveiled its Climate Action Plan – a bold initiative designed to move the county off of fossil fuels entirely by 2035. The plan also calls for a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by that same year.
San Diego isn’t the only city with climate change goals. There are many other municipalities across the country that have announced their own 100% green energy pledges.
But San Diego’s Climate Action Plan is unusual in that the targets are legally binding. Failure to meet its green goals could come with severe penalties.
We’re only one year into this initiative. But so far, San Diego seems to be right on track.
San Diego’s Climate Change Goals within Reach
On December 7, San Diego County announced its first annual Climate Action Plan Report Card. The “judges” behind this report card looked at all 19 municipalities throughout the greater metro region:
- The City of San Diego was the only municipality to earn a “gold” designation.
- No municipalities won a silver grade.
- Carlsbad, San Marcos, and Del Mar all walked away with bronze designations.
- National City received a “participation” badge.
- Escondido and Vista got called out for their lack of improvement.
And we’re sorry to say that Santee, Poway, Imperial Beach, El Cajon, and Coronado have all yet to commit to any climate action goals of their own.
So how is it that San Diego city is so far ahead of the pack?
The Secret behind San Diego’s Climate Change Progress
There really is no secret at all. Because San Diego is a tourist hub, community stakeholders remain deeply committed to protecting local habitats and threatened coastlines.
Take solar energy, for example.
Thanks to supportive green policies, this clean power technology continues to enjoy widespread adoption among homeowners and businesses throughout San Diego. That these solar customers also enjoy huge utility bill savings is simply icing on the cake.
Add to this electric vehicles, conservation, and recycling – and it becomes pretty clear why San Diego is such a leader in the fight against global warming.
According to San Diego’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Cody Hooven,
“The City of San Diego continues to lead the way with its groundbreaking Climate Action Plan and is honored to be recognized as the new standard for other cities to follow… In the year since the plan was formally adopted, we’ve already begun to make significant investments that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create a cleaner tomorrow for our neighborhoods.”
We’ve got about one year until the next Climate Plan Report Card comes out.
If you live in one of the municipalities that didn’t perform well the first time around, give us a call. With our help, you’ll be able to shrink your carbon footprint and make it easier for San Diego (as a whole) to meet its long-term climate change goals.
Schedule your free Sunline Energy appointment today.
